Amalgamatoh



UNITED STATES PATEN )FFICEV` JOHN A. BROCK, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

AMALGAMATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 28,136, dated May 1, 1860.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J. A. BROCK, of Ohicago, in the county of'Cook and State of Illinois, have invented al new and useful Improvement in Gold-Amal amators; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure l, is a vertical central section through the machine. Fig. 2, is a top view of the lever. Fig. 3, isa bottom view of the upper disk of the amalgamator. Fig. 4, is a side view of the lower, and Fig. 5 a side vie'wof the upper disk.

Similar letters of reference in each of the several figures indicate corresponding parts.

The nature of my invention consists, first, in a lower revolving disk subdivided into a number of receptacles, in combination with an upper revolving ribbed disk; the two disks revolving in opposite directions so that the ribs of the upper disk carry the pulverized ore all over the surface of the mercury and the lower disk carry the mercury in a still plain toward the ore, and thus, owing to the pulverized substance moving in an opposite direction to that in which the plane of mercury is moving, the substances are spread in a thin layer, the friction between the ore and mercury and the tendency to amalgamate very greatly enhanced, and all the disadvantages arising from the gold being compelled to sink through a thick layer of sand, and of passing over mercury which does not move toward it, overcome.

The two revolving disks between which the amalgamation is to be produced, are intended to be set as close together as the size of the sand will admit, so that every particle of gold, even the finest flour and flake gold will be brought into contact with the mercury, while in all machines where the sand is spread over the mercury in a thick layer, much of that thin gold will liever penetrate through that layer to the mercury at its bottom.

To enable others skilled in the art, to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

The amalgamator consisting of two disks a, o, inner cone (Z, and outer cone f, is arranged on a vertical shaft Z, Z, which is connected with the horizontal driving shaft k, by means of bevel gearing a, m. The lower rim Z), and a concentric rim b, of alsome-Y what smaller radius so as to form a circular cavity c, betweeen the two rims. The space between the rim and the central cone (Z, is occupied by a second disk e, which is made in sections l, 2, 3, 4, (see Fig. 2) so that they can be inserted or removed for the purpose of cleaning them, by simply screwing down the hand wheel and thus lowering the disk a sufficient distance that the section of the disk e, can be got at.

The sections l, 2, 3, 4, are provided with radial and concentric ribs so as to form a number of small receptacles v1, z', for the reception of the mercury to be used for amalgamation. Thus an even plane of mercury will be obtained and preserved while the disk rotates without this subdivision in small receptacles. The mercury would fly toward and gather around the periphery of disk e, in obedience to the centrifugal force imparted to it by the rotation of the disk. It would also gather in small globules instead of presenting a uniform and even surface to the material with which it shall amalgamate. The upper disk o, the lower surface of which is provided with curved ribs p, (as seen in Fig. 3) has a hollow cone f, in its center. The upper end of the cone f, is formed into a sleeve which hangs upon the collar, y, of the shaft Z. A. bevel wheel 1', keyed to said sleeve takes into driving bevel wheel m. Thus it will be seen, the two disks a, e, and o, are made to revolve against each other, as the cog wheel u, fastened to shaft Z, of disk 0, e, and the cog wheel 11, fastened t0 the sleeve of the upper disk 0, take into the same cog wheel m, upon driving shaft c.

The inner surface of the hollow cone f, is of about the same dimensions as the cone LZ, of disk a, so that when the disks 0, and e, are set at a proper distance from each other, (which distance can be regulated by operating the hand wheel g, as above described) there will be a hollow space j, between the two cones, communicating with the space between the disks o, and e. I

The cone f, is provided with holes z, through which the space j, is made to communicate with a circular hopper g, arranged on the outside of the cone f. The pulverized ore passes from this hopper through the holes h, and space j, into the space between the disks, where it is swept around by the curved ribs p, of the upper disk and kept in close contact with the surface of mercury formed upon disk e. The precious meta-l contained in the pulverized substance is thus made to amalgamate with the mercury, While the refuse material is nally swept out over the periphery rim of the disk a. Heavier particles containing some of the amalgamatednsubstances which may, perchance be carried along toward the periphery will gather in the Ycircular cavity o.

The corrugated surface of cone d, serves to scour the gold and free it from small particles of earth or any other foreign substance which it maybe coated with.

I have found it to be of great advantage to make the upper disk 0, of a material or coat its under surface with a material such as for instance, block tin or a combination of zinc and tin, which has a sufficient affinity to mercury to be coated withmercury while in contact with it. As the sections of disk e, are made of the same material, the whole surface of the ribs z', will coat with mercury and thus a uniform and unbroken surface of mercury will be produced all over disk e. By this means, the pulverized ore will be worked between two surfaces of mercury and a far more efficient amalgamation will thus be effected.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A revolving disk e, subdivided into a number of receptacles z', z', in combination with an upper revolving ribbed disk o; the two disks revolving in opposite directions so that the ribs of the upper disk carry the pulverized ore all over the surface ofthe mercury and the lower disk carry the mercury iu a still plain toward the ore, substantially in the manner Yand for the purposes set forth.

J. A. BROCK.

Witnesses:

GOODWIN Y. AT LEE, R. W. FLENWICK. 

